


That Which is Hidden

by EverybodyLovesEggsy



Series: Eternal, Unchanging Love [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: M/M, Not Epilogue Compliant, Patronus, Slow Burn, Soul Bond, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-03
Updated: 2020-02-15
Packaged: 2021-02-27 23:35:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,301
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22534099
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EverybodyLovesEggsy/pseuds/EverybodyLovesEggsy
Summary: Severus is drawn to Lily, but Lily is not drawn to Severus. She is drawn to James. True to form, Lily and James’s Patronuses are female and male deer to reflect that they are soul bound. Severus’s doe Patronus, and his soul’s pull, make him think that he is bound to Lily, even though Lily is not bound to him. So, Severus think he is without a requited soul bond. Unknown to him, there is a reason – in the shape of a person not yet born – why Severus is drawn to Lily, even though she is not his soul bound.
Relationships: Harry Potter/Severus Snape
Series: Eternal, Unchanging Love [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1621339
Comments: 13
Kudos: 81





	1. Wrapped up in Grief

Something was wrong. He could feel it in his soul. The pull that was coming from his soul bound was stronger than Severus has ever felt it before.

_Something was wrong._

Severus quickly followed the pull and apparated, risking a splinch by not having a set destination in mind other than to his soul bound. To Lily.

Somehow, Severus made it without splinching himself, and Godric’s Hollow came into view. Dread filled Severus. The house was visible. The fidelity charm was broken. He quickly made his way towards the house.

Focusing on the pull, on the only hope Severus had left that his soul bound might still be alive, he made his way into the house. Just inside, Severus hesitated at the sight of James Potter’s body sprawled in front of the stairs. Fear at what else he would find filled him. He took a breath, the blood rushing in his ears almost deafening, and stepped around Potter’s body to head up the stairs.

Severus fell to his knees at the sight of Lily lying lifeless on the floor, and gathered her up in his arms. A howl ripped itself from his chest when he felt the strength of the pull was fading, almost as if his soul needed to see, to _feel_ , that she was dead in order to believe it. Wrapped up in his grief, it wasn’t until his own sobs began to quiet that he registered the sobbing of another, of Lily’s infant son. Severus looked at the boy and his dark eyes met tear-filled, green ones. He had Lily’s eyes.

A sob broke through and Severus quickly moved his gaze away from the boy’s eyes, lest he fall into another wave of grief. His gaze was drawn to the cut on the boy’s head. A cut in the same shape as the wand movement needed to use the killing curse. Severus inhaled with realization. The Dark Lord was dead.

But so was Lily and the bond that Severus always had to her.

It was then that Severus heard sound of Sirius Black and Rubeus Hagrid loudly calling out for James and Lily. Gently, Severus laid Lily’s body back down to the floor and stood up. With one last glance at Lily’s body and then her son, Severus apparated out of the house just before Sirius and Hagrid entered the nursery.


	2. Unlovable

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter is actually really sad for Harry and I hadn't meant it to be this sad originally but I kind of like how it turned out. After this chapter, things will get considerably brighter for Harry so don't worry! Anyways, enjoy!

Harry had never been so happy as he had when Hagrid showed up and told him he was a wizard. It was like his long-time dream of getting away from the Dursley’s was finally coming true. He simply couldn’t believe that it was all real. That _magic_ was real.

So, a little overwhelmed, Harry sat alone in one of the compartments on the train instead of trying to make friends with anybody. Then again, after never being able to make friend because of Dudley, Harry didn’t have a whole lot of confidence in his social skills.

But then the red-headed boy whose family helped him to the platform, Ron he remembered his mother said, came and sat by him. And so, he made is third ever friend – after Hagrid and Hedwig, of course. Ron was fun to talk to, especially after Harry bought them a bunch of sweets. As they were enjoying their snacks, which Ron helpfully explained what some of them were, Ron asked a rather strange question.

“So, have you met your soul bound yet? My mum says a lot of people meet theirs at the welcoming feast after we are sorted if they are from the same house or during classes if they are in the same year.”

Harry frowned, “Soul bound?” He had no idea what Ron was talking about.

Ron looked up from the chocolate frog box he was about to open, “You mean you don’t know what a soul bound is?”

Harry shook his head.

“Oh, wow, the pull must have been awfully confusing growing up then. My mum says that the pull we feel is our soul reaching out to its other half. That usually means the person we are meant to be with when we get older. My mum and dad are each other’s soulmates and they met when they both got sorted into Gryffindor when they first came to Hogwarts.”

Pull? Harry didn’t think he’d ever felt some sort of pull. If he felt no pull did that mean he didn’t have a soulmate? Did that mean his Aunt and Uncle were right and nobody was going to love him? Harry frowned and looked at Ron. He hesitated slightly before asking, “Has anyone ever not had a soul bound before?”

Ron frowned, “I don’t think so.”

Harry felt horror wash over him. He had just started to feel like maybe he wasn’t a freak like Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon kept saying and now he is the first wizard to not have a soul bound. He truly was an unlovable freak. Harry felt tears burn behind his eyes. Not wanting to cry in front of his new friend, Harry blinked a few times and looked down to where Ron’s pet rat was sitting.

Harry was only vaguely listening when Ron saw where he was looking and introduced the rat as Scabbers, too wrapped up in his thoughts. Maybe nobody needed to know about his lack of a pull, he thought. That way nobody would know how much of a freak he was. Harry nodded to himself, resolved to keep it a secret, and turned his attention to the girl who was looking for a toad for another boy.

***

It wasn’t until Harry was laying in his new bed in Gryffindor tower did his mind turn back to the idea of soulmates. After the sorting, Harry saw as a few other first year Gryffindors found their soulmates after they were all sitting next to one another. Two of his new dormmates, Dean and Seamus, were one of those pairs.

Harry had listened to people talking about how they hoped to find their soul bound, and whether or not they could feel if they were in the somewhere in the room. A few people had seemed really disappointed when they said that they didn’t think their soul bound was at Hogwarts, while others seemed excited at the idea of figuring out who their soul bound was now that they could feel them in the room.

For the most part Harry stayed quiet while they talked about it, but then Ron asked if he thought Harry’s soul bound was there. Harry told him no and quickly changed the subject by asking Percy who the teacher in black robes that made his scar hurt was. Luckily, that had taken Harry’s mind off of soulmates for the rest of the feast as he wondered why his scar had hurt like that for the first time he could remember. He enjoyed getting to know Ron, his brothers, and some other Gryffindor first years for the rest of feast after that.

But now, laying on the first comfortable bed Harry could ever remember laying on, it was all that Harry could think about, his Aunt and Uncle’s words about him being an unlovable freak echoing in his head. Harry felt a tear slip free and he rolled over so he could quietly cry into his pillow.


	3. Feelings of Contentment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter follows Harry's first and second year (and is kind of a mix between the movies and the books because I can lol) and is completely Severus's perspective. Somehow I ended up without writing actual dialogue but I like how it turned out too much to change it, so you guys are stuck with Severus's thoughts :) Enjoy!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter and the following two are going to be very long because they follow Harry’s years in Hogwarts. This chapter follows 1st and 2nd year, Chapter 4 follows 3rd and 4th year, and Chapter 5 follows 5th and 6th year, whereas Chapter 6 is covering 7th year and Chapters 7 and 8 are post-Hogwarts, post-Canon, and definitely Not Epilogue Compliant. Therefore, it won’t be until Chapter 6 where I am not covering two of Harry’s years at Hogwarts in one chapter, so, therefore, they will be significantly shorter.

First Year

The boy looked like James Potter. Dark, messy hair paired with bottle-clap glasses. But he had Lily’s bright green eyes. The boy didn’t stand proud and arrogant the way his father at eleven had; No, this Potter stood their quietly, hunched slightly, almost as if he was trying to draw as little attention to himself as possible. Then green eyes met his own and Severus was surprised at the lack of anger or resentment he thought he would feel towards the Potter spawn. If anything, he felt rather content. Inwardly frowning, the Potion Master pushed that thought away for later consideration.

Severus watched as the boy winced and rubbed his scar lightly and the red-headed boy next to him, probably another Weasley, began talking to him. Potter responded without looking away from Severus’s gaze. The Potions Master was the first to look away, turning to Quirrell so he could respond to the stuttering fool. By the time Severus looked back at the boy, he had his attention back on the sorting, smiling at Weasley, who had been, quite expectedly, sorted into Gryffindor with the rest of his brood. That same odd feeling of contentment washed over Severus again but he dismissed it. It was probably just because he was Lily’s child.

And then it was Potter’s turn to be sorted. Severus had to hold back a sneer when he saw Albus lean forward in anticipation. Interestingly enough, the boy was a hat stall. Like with everything else, he expected the boy to be just like his father, an instant Gryffindor. But even Lily didn’t have a hat stall quite as long as this boy had. He wondered what was the other house the hat was considering him for. He knew Lily’s other option had been Ravenclaw.

But Potter still ended up in Gryffindor, as expected; Pity, Severus had been hoping to be surprised.

With that, Severus mostly tuned out the rest of the sorting. The feast began and he continued speaking with Quirrell, not particularly interested in anything the other man was actually saying, and continuously glancing over at Potter, unable to keep his gaze away for some unexplainable reason.

***

Not even ten minutes into class and Severus found a reason to sneer down at Potter Senior’s spawn. He was looming over Potter, just about to inform him of all of the answers to the questions he had asked, when he glanced down and realized that the boy had been taking notes. While he didn’t condone the boy’s cheek – which he would be making sure to take points off for – and wasn’t particularly surprised that Potter hadn’t known the answers considering most first years wouldn’t know them, Severus felt a small feeling of regret in accusing him of not paying attention. But appearances must, so he bitingly told the boy the answers and took off points, although he did make sure to make it clear it was for the cheek.

It wasn’t until after the class was finished that Severus allowed himself to consider further. It was rare that Severus would regret keeping up his mask, but Potter, it seemed, was full of surprises.

The boy didn’t carry himself the arrogant way that the way his spoiled brat of a father had, even though, according to the Headmaster, this Potter was also being treated like a prince. When thinking over what had happened at the start of class, Potter’s response didn’t seem to be of arrogance the way his father would have been; no, it almost seemed defensive.

Unless the boy turned out to be an active rule-breaker and bully, as unlikely as it seemed so far, Severus was beginning to believe the boy might be nothing like James Potter, outside of his looks.

***

The way Harry Potter’s luck was going, Severus knew he was going to be very busy trying to protect the boy as Albus had him swear to.

On Halloween, Severus had been furious, though honestly not surprised. Afterall, this was a group of Gryffindors. While trying to make sure Quirrell wasn’t going to get past the Cerberus, Severus had felt a pull that felt like a soul bond. So shocked by the unexpected feeling, he was scratched by the giant fleabag. But since that particular bond was impossible because his soul bound was dead, Severus’s mind thought quickly until he realized that it could be the vow he had made to Dumbledore, to protect Potter, that was causing the feeling. This was definitely something he would need to think about when he wasn’t avoiding being mauled by a three-headed dog. Then, slightly horrified, it occurred to him what must be happening to cause the binding of this type of vow to make him feel a pull. He quickly made his way down the hall, when a large crash was audible and the pull stopped. Which is when Severus and Minerva, found the trio of Gryffindors standing next to an unconscious troll. That strange feeling of contentment Severus kept feeling around the boy, mixed with a bit of relief and shock upon seeing him unharmed, was the only thing that kept Severus from laying into them the way Minerva was prepared to do when she told the group of first years to explain themselves.

To someone who has lived and breathed lies since becoming a spy, the know-it-all was obviously lying. He believed that Potter and Weasley had been looking for Granger and then saved her life, but what he didn’t know was the _real_ reason that Granger needed to be searched for and why Potter and Weasley didn’t go to a bloody professor or prefect about finding the girl in the first place! And to make matters worse, Minerva _rewarded_ Potter and Weasley for putting themselves in danger! Rewarded them for _sheer dumb luck_ , as she so elegantly put it! Bloody _Gryffindors_!

He stalked off, trying to hide the pain in his leg from the bloody dog, as he fumed silently to himself. He knew that, had it been any other house, the students would have at least received a detention, not just Minerva’s reprimand and a manipulations of points. It hadn’t helped Severus’s mood whatsoever, which was already affected by Quirrell. Whatever game the stuttering fool was playing was a dangerous one and Severus knew he needed to keep an even better eye on him than he already was.

Not too much later, the Quidditch season began and Potter became seeker due to blatant Gryffindor favoritism, despite the rule against first years not being allowed to play.

After the pull from the vow that he felt on Halloween, Severus was unsurprised to feel it again when his Slytherin Seeker tried to knock the boy off his broom. But then he felt it return just as Potter’s broom jerked out of his control, obviously under someone else’s control. Severus began the counter-jinx quickly, cursing Quirrell in the back of his head, but it wasn’t helping the boy quick enough. And then his robes were set on fire. He used it as an excuse to “accidentally” to knock Quirrell over, even as he wondered how it happened in the first place. Finally, he put the fire out and turned back to the game to see Potter catching – nearly _swallowing_ – the snitch.

Severus passed over the galleons he lost to Minerva in their bet even as he wondered if Potter was always going to be this much of a danger magnet. _Honestly_.

***

It wasn’t until after Christmas did Severus feel the pull again, luckily. The first time was when Potter had detention with Hagrid in the Forbidden Forest – a detention he secretly fumed about because no _eleven-year-old_ should have been going in there, detention or not – which was rather unsurprising considering the venue. This did, however, confirm Severus’s thoughts that the boy was a danger magnet. As if the Dark Lord coming after Potter when he returned wasn’t enough. At this rate, Severus would be saving the boy a lot more often then he wanted to be doing.

Absently, the Potion Master wondered if he didn’t want to save Potter as frequently as it was looking like he would need to because it took up his time, or because Lily’s son deserved to be able to just be a normal wizarding child. He pushed the thought away and added it to his slowly growing list of unexpected… _feelings_ surrounding Harry Potter to consider later.

The next time he felt the pull was just before end of the year exams. It had startled Severus because he could think of nothing the child could be doing that would cause the vow to pull, especially considering the Quidditch season was over. With a frown, Severus decided to look for the boy. As he stalked the halls, the pull only continued to get stronger. He was about to follow the pull to see if it might be directional enough to lead him to Potter when he came across Albus. The Headmaster, who was supposed to be away from Hogwarts at the moment, was heading quickly towards the third-floor corridor where the Cerberus was guarding the trap door. Severus inwardly cursed, realizing that is likely where Potter was and followed the man (who looked at Severus strangely for a second before accepting Severus’s help – the potion master inwardly sighed, knowing he would have to explain, at the very least, the pull to the Headmaster). It seemed that Potter _had_ obtained some of the arrogance Potter Senior had had if he was now rushing into danger like an idiot, rather than just attracting it.

The boy and his friends turned out relatively unharmed, but Severus inwardly cursed at Albus for having him take the vow because it wasn’t until Potter woke up after his tryst with the Dark Lord did the pull go away. It was rather uncomfortable to feel the pull for such a long time, especially since Potter was _fine_. He couldn’t decide if he wanted to go berate the boy and ask what he had been thinking, going after the stone, or if he just wanted to go and make sure with his own eyes that Potter was truly alright, all things considered. Severus inwardly sighed at the confusing feelings that kept surrounding Lily’s son.

***

The Head of Slytherin scowled when the Gryffindors were once again rewarded for being reckless idiots at the leaving feast, when students from any other house would have been reprimanded or even expelled. Just like when the mutt, Black, nearly got Severus himself killed. Didn’t any of the other staff realize it was _encouraging_ behavior that could easily get students – _children_ – killed? That they would mostly likely do _more_ things that put them in such danger? Severus had a feeling it wouldn’t be the last time that he felt the pull to protect the danger magnet, reckless, rush-into-danger _Gryffindor_ that is Harry Potter.

***

When Severus finally found himself back at his home in Herefordshire – his refuge away from his despised, run-down childhood home in Cokeworth, the disgustingly lavished Prince Manor that was only his, a half-blood’s, due to the lack of other descendants of the Prince line, as well as the Dark Lord and Albus Dumbledore – he finally found himself with the time to consider Harry Potter. The boy defied all expectations that Severus had had of him. When Albus told him that Potter was being treated like a prince, Severus had feared another James Potter. However, the boy seemed neither arrogant or cruel, nor was he an idiot – as shown by his just above average potions grade despite Severus’s biting remarks and Slytherin sabotage – although he was rather ignorant, but Severus didn’t think it was from laziness, not after realizing Potter had been taking notes in that first class. When Potter didn’t carry himself in an arrogant manner the way his father had, Severus had hoped that the boy was like Lily. However, he did not show the same love of books she had, and his temper had thus far only shown itself to be almost defensive – usually in response to Severus’s biting remarks – whereas Lily was a bit easier provoked. Then again nothing had yet tested the boy’s temper that Severus could see. So no, Harry Potter wasn’t anything that Severus had expected and he honestly didn’t really know what to make of the boy.

However, it was not Potter’s unexpected behavior that had Severus curious, but rather his own reactions to the boy. Before he had met the young Gryffindor, or had the chance to observe his behaviors, Severus had been fully prepared to resent the boy who looked and, according to Albus, was raised so much like his father. Yet, when he met the boy’s eyes for the first time since that Halloween night ten years ago, all Severus had felt was contentment. It was rather strange; he had never met the boy and he had no reason to feel anything but resentment, considering his expectations, but the Potion Master found that he felt rather… serene. And every time since that first meeting of those vibrant green eyes, that same feeling returned when he was around Potter. The only thing that Severus could think to explain the unexplainable feeling is that despite every preconceived notion, the boy was still Lily’s son.

Even more curious than Severus’s lack of resentment, was the pull he felt when Potter had found himself in danger. It was so very similar to the pull he had felt that fateful Halloween ten years ago. The pull of the soul bond had been so strong that night. Stronger than he had ever thought he would feel, considering his bond with Lily was a weak, almost non-existent, pull of an unrequited soul bond. And then there was ten years of stillness. Ten years of crushing loneliness, from the knowledge that the only person he had ever felt connected, pulled to, was gone. Severus had never expected to feel himself connected to another. But the feeling of what _had_ to be the vow had felt so alike that, for a moment, Severus had thought that his soul bound was alive. But that was impossible and he had made a vow of protection to Lily’s son on the same night she was killed. It must have created this unprecedented connection between them. It was the only thing that made sense.

Both of these _feelings_ , the contentment and the pull, would also explain the unanticipated desire for Potter to have a normal wizarding childhood. One free of life-threatening situations. Something he himself didn’t have, considering his drunk of a father, the cruelty of the Marauders bullying, and the following seduction to the Dark Lord’s side. But Potter was a danger magnet, a foolhardy Gryffindor rushing into danger head-first, on top of being at the top of the Dark Lord’s hitlist when the man made his inevitable return. It seems Harry Potter was destined never to have a normal childhood, no matter how much Severus found he inexplicably wished it for him. So, Severus resigned himself to the conflicting feelings of wanting to protect the boy and berate him for his foolhardy bravery.

***

Second Year

Severus was furious when he saw that Potter and Weasley had nearly broken the statute of secrecy. If it wasn’t for a large majority of the department in the ministry dedicated to enforcing the statute with obliviate spells, the two could have very well exposed the magical world! Had that happened, it would be like the witch trials all over again, but worse, now that Muggles had technology! So, when Severus promised the two that they would be expelled, he had fully meant it, no matter his conflicting feelings surrounding Potter, for this was much bigger than the boy. Luckily for Potter and Weasley, typical Gryffindor favoring remained in place and Minerva and Albus let them off easy. After Severus had calmed down, as much as he didn’t want to admit it, the boys remaining at Hogwarts wasn’t completely wrong, seeing as how they were both only twelve. However, they did deserve a much worse punishment than a _single_ detention.

Before the Potion Master’s anger could work back up at the lack of punishment, Severus wondered what could have possibly possessed Potter to do something so completely idiotic. Had it not been for his previously strange reactions to Potter (the Slytherin had become only more furious at Potter and Weasley’s idiocy when he felt the content feeling despite his anger) that led to the observations that Potter was _not_ James Potter, Severus probably would have actually meant his accusations that the boy was being arrogant and selfish for doing something so utterly _stupid_ as risking the statute. But there was something in Severus telling him he didn’t have all of the information. As a spy, he absolutely _loathed_ not having all of the information. It made his position that much more dangerous and it put him on edge. But the Potions Master had long since learned that his instincts are one of the very few things, if not the only thing, he could completely trust in this world. So, he wondered what exactly had happened to make Potter and Weasley take the damned car.

***

As per usual, Severus wanted to strangle Lockhart when the buffoon claimed he would be able to make the restorative potion for the cat. Severus was sneering at the man in no time at all for trying to do the Potion Master’s job for a bit of fame, when it was obvious the man had no knowledge to actually do what he claims he can do.

At the same time, the Head of Slytherin wanted to roll his eyes at Filch. While he could understand the man’s distress at thinking his familiar was dead and then being upset that the cat was petrified, accusing Potter of doing it was completely ridiculous. For one, Potter was not so stupid as to attack Mrs. Norris and then stick around for Filch to catch him. For another, the boy had no blood on his hands and, as a second year, no knowledge of how to use a scourgify to remove the blood had he done it, indicating he didn’t write the message along the wall. When Filch then accused Potter of attacking the man’s familiar based on the fact that the boy had found out that the caretaker was a squib, the young Gryffindor looked confused at the word. Severus wondered how Potter didn’t know what a squib was since he had grown up with knowledge of the magical world according to Albus. Nevertheless, the look prompted him to save the boy from the situation that he obviously didn’t know how to escape, by giving him a chance to explain where he had been.

Severus made sure to do so with his mask of reluctance and hatred for the boy, of course.

He was surprised to hear that Potter and his friends had attended a Death Day party. The Potion Master quickly reinforced his occlumency shields in an effort to maintain control of himself so that he didn’t laugh at what he imagined the Gryffindors’ realization at what a Death Day party was like. Severus wondered if he hadn’t been completely successful as Potter narrowed his eyes at him before smoothing out his expression.

However, the amusement left Severus when Potter claimed lack of appetite and desire to go to bed as the reasons for not attending the feast after leaving the party. It was clear to him that the boy was lying, and the truth had something to do with Potter finding Mrs. Norris. In an effort to find out what the boy was hiding, Severus called Potter out on his lie. The Potions Master tried to get the boy removed from Quidditch as punishment for lying, despite knowing Gryffindor favoritism would prevent such a punishment, especially with the first match of the season coming up soon. As predicted, the punishment was not enforced, but Severus was mildly surprised when the Headmaster seemed not to take Severus’s belief that Potter was lying seriously. Had Albus done so, he would have asked Severus to join him in the Headmaster’s office. This irritated the Potion Master and he stalked down to his rooms.

***

Why was it always during Quidditch that Potter found himself in situations that Severus couldn’t save him from? In general, the pull twinged during Quidditch practices and matches making him wish that the boy didn’t play the sport. But now, _yet again_ , something was determined to knock Potter from the air, causing the pull to do the equivalent of screaming at him to help the boy. After Quirrell’s jinx in Potter’s first year, Severus had seriously hoped that nothing else extraordinarily dangerous happened to the boy during matches. But of course, Potter’s damnable ability to attract danger to him made that hope futile because this year it was a _rogue bludger_. As if bludgers weren’t dangerous enough when they _weren’t_ targeting someone.

Thank Merlin for the Weasley twins protecting the boy, because Severus was sure he was going to have a heart attack when the damn thing had first turned on Potter. It was only years of experience as a spy that kept Severus in his seat, rather than demanding the match be stopped so that they could find out who tampered with the bludger. That urge only got stronger, easily matching the strength of the pull, when Potter _sent the menaces away_ and was obviously trying to find the snitch while dodging the bludger.

Then Malfoy was laughing at Potter and something distracted the Gryffindor Seeker long enough for the bludger to _actually_ _hit_ _the boy_. Severus had to bite back a small gasp of both surprise and pain when the already strong pull of the vow tugged sharply in his chest, knocking the breath out of him, and a dull ache began in his right forearm, presumably where the bludger had made contact with Potter. Despite what the Potions Master was sure was a broken arm, Potter caught the snitch and roughly landed – which curiously didn’t bring the sharp pain from the vow or any accompanying aches like the bludger had, but just the twinge that occurred during _normal_ Quidditch injuries – on the grass of the pitch after falling off his broom.

Once again, Severus had to rely on his spy experience to keep from leaping out of his seat and rushing over to Potter the way the boy’s friends and teammates did. Though, if he did make his was quicker than he normally would have, nobody needed to know.

By the time Severus got there, Lockhart was already kneeling next to Potter. The Potion Master glared at the man when the boy told him he’d rather just go to the infirmary and the man didn’t listen, too busy trying to show off. Even Severus who _actually had_ basic Medi Wizard training for his Potions Mastery, would have sent Potter to the infirmary. Instead the idiot vanished the boy’s bones! What was it about this boy that kept finding him in these situations?!

Severus inwardly scowled as he made sure that someone took Potter to Poppy; the vow was probably going to be acting up the entire time Potter was re-growing his bones, if the sensation when the boy was hit with the bludger was any indication. Yet _another_ weird thing was occurring because of the vow’s pull. Obviously the connection between him and Potter was stronger than the Slytherin had expected.

Perhaps there was something more than just the vow at play. Severus would have to think on it further.

***

The Head of Slytherin had only been able to fall into a doze the next night because of the pull. So, when Dumbledore woke up the professors for an emergency staff meeting in the middle of the night in order to inform everyone of Colin Creevey’s petrification, Severus was not as bleary-eyed or annoyed as the others; he was more resigned to the lack of sleep than anything at that point. Had he not been used to late nights from both patrolling the halls as well as late-night potion brewing, the Potions Master would probably have been in a much fouler mood than he was.

After the meeting, since it seemed sleep was going to keep eluding him, Severus decided he might as well be productive and get some grading done. However, he was unable to keep his focus on the papers in front of him. His mind kept drifting to the boy asleep in the hospital wing, currently re-growing thirty-three bones and the cause of the pull. At the moment, it was small but would throb every now and then, as if trying to remind Severus that it was there, and the Potions Master couldn’t help but _worry_ about the boy. The feeling confused him; the only people Severus had ever worried over were his mother, when he left her to go to Hogwarts and she had to deal with her abusive husband alone, and Lily. Grudgingly, Severus had to admit that he was becoming a bit… attached… to Potter despite how the boy significantly increased Severus’s stress levels with the amount of danger he found himself in. But the Slytherin knew exactly where Potter was and what was causing the pull. There was nothing Severus could do for the boy that was not already being done by Poppy.

And yet Severus still found that he was worried about Potter.

The Potions Master gave up on trying to grade and made his way over to the infirmary. Perhaps _seeing_ that the boy was indeed fine would help ease the inconceivable feeling. Or maybe he just didn’t like the thought of Potter being in pain, alone, with no help from pain-relieving potions due to the skele-gro in the boy’s system. Severus squashed that thought quickly.

Just outside the doors of the hospital wing, the Slytherin disillusioned himself – it wouldn’t do for Potter to see him, after all – and slipped inside. He passed the Creevey boy and made his way to the bed in the far corner where Potter was laying with his back to the door. Severus moved so that he could see the boy’s face and, after a moment of hesitation, conjured a chair to sit in. Potter’s face was relaxed in sleep, making him look almost innocent. It made Severus realize how tense the boy was during the day for the difference to be so stark. He frowned, and thought over all of the times he had seen the boy in the last two years; Not once had the Potions Master seen the Gryffindor be anything less than wary of his surroundings. The only times that Severus recognized that trait in anyone other than himself, was when a child was being abused. But that was impossible. He was Gryffindor’s Golden boy and the Headmaster would never allow the-boy-who-lived to be abused. No, there had to be another explanation.

Severus’s thoughts were interrupted when the boy shifted in his sleep. The Slytherin watched the Gryffindor frown and mumble incoherently. The boy then jerked suddenly and his breathing sped up, obviously in the midst of a nightmare. Without thinking, Severus leaned forward and gently brushed his fingers through the boy’s hair. He immediately relaxed and leaned into the Potion Master’s touch. Belatedly realizing what he was doing, Severus carefully removed his hand, quickly stood up and vanished his chair before fleeing the room.

First he was worried about Har–Potter, and now he was comforting him when he was obviously having a nightmare? What in the world was happening to him? And why was it always when Har– _Potter_ was involved?

***

Someone had stolen ingredients to make Polyjuice potion and Severus had no idea who. It both annoyed and frustrated him to no end. When he first figured out that it had happened after taking stock of his ingredients, as he always did at the end of the month, the Potions Master had kept quiet, hoping to catch the little thief. Failing that, he figured that if he acted as if he hadn’t noticed, the culprit would show their hand. But, somehow, they and their secret brewing was escaping Severus’s gaze. The whole thing put him in a rather foul mood.

Luckily, it wasn’t too much later when Dumbledore asked him to assist Lockhart in a dueling club. Severus accepted gleefully, his mood instantly improved at the thought of putting the man on his backside. Afterall, it wasn’t everyday he was _asked_ to cast on idiot professors.

Then the duel in question finally arrived and Severus nearly laughed at the look on Lockhart’s face when his Expelliarmus sent the fool flying, rather than just disarming the man. He had to stop himself from rolling his eyes when the sham claimed that he let it happen and tried to pair up Weasley and Potter for a duel rather than facing Severus again. The Potions Master was sure he’d be viewing the memory for his own enjoyment many times before the year was through.

Severus prevented the catastrophe that would have occurred due to Weasley’s broken wand and suggested Malfoy duel Potter instead. When Malfoy casted Serpensortia, Lockhart, unsurprisingly, was no help whatsoever, and only made the snake angrier. Before he could get rid of the serpent, familiar hissing sounded in the room. Severus froze, staring at the source of the noise in shock, memories attached to the dreaded sound threatening to resurface. The Potions Master quickly pushed them away to banish the serpent before turning back to the source of the feared language.

Harry Potter was a Parseltongue.

Severus dismissed the students and watched as Potter bolted from the room with Weasley and Granger not far behind him. Of all abilities that the boy could receive, it just had to be that one.

No doubt word of the boy’s ability would get around Hogwarts and Potter would be accused of being the one who was opening the chamber, and the heir of Salazar Slytherin.

The Potions Master paused mid-stride before continuing his way to the Headmaster’s office. If the boy really was a descendant of Slytherin, that would make him related to the Dark Lord, no matter how distantly. Severus shuddered at the thought and quickened his pace. While he didn’t believe that Potter was the one opening the chamber, the Potions Master couldn’t see anything good coming out of the fear that was going to be directed towards the boy.

Knowing Potter’s luck, it would probably lead to the boy finding himself in yet another dangerous situation like the incident with the stone last year.

***

Of course, Potter is found by Justin Finch-Fletchly’s petrified form. As if there hadn’t been enough circumstance surrounding the boy to accuse him of opening the chamber.

Then Granger needs a potion due to using cat hair in a Polyjuice potion, showing Severus that the Gryffindor trio were the ones stealing ingredients and making Polyjuice, even if there was no proof against anyone beyond Granger. It annoyed Severus that they got away with it – he fleetingly wondered if Potter’s hat stall was for Slytherin considering his probable ancestry and now his ability to keep their brewing Polyjuice undetected, but dismissed the idea as quick as it came considering how much of a bloody Gryffindor the boy seemed to be. What really bugged Severus was that he had no clue what they could have _possibly_ have needed Polyjuice for.

After that, aside from the student body obviously still believing Potter to be the heir of Slytherin, nothing out of the ordinary occurred. It made Severus suspicious; Why would the petrifications just stop all of a sudden? Was it because of the holidays and the culprit went home? Or for some other reason? Either way, it put him on edge until February, when Granger and a Ravenclaw Prefect were petrified. At least with Granger petrified, Potter was no longer under suspicion.

Severus was rather relieved when these petrifications caused Quidditch to be cancelled, because the last thing he needed was for Potter to be facing another tampered bludger, or worse, while he and the other Professors were doing everything they could to stop the petrifications.

Which became even more difficult when Lucius Malfoy convinced the other school governors to remove Dumbledore the same time Hagrid was taken into custody. Severus knew Lucius’s motivation was to get Dumbledore removed from Hogwarts all together, but the Potions Master wondered how the other school governors were convinced that removing the Headmaster – the man everyone praised as being the most powerful wizard of their time – while the students were in danger was a good idea. Though, to be fair, when Lucius Malfoy is involved, there is probably also blackmail to do the convincing.

And then Ginny Weasley was taken into the Chamber of Secrets by the Basilisk – because Severus was now reasonably sure that’s what the monster was and was kicking himself for not realizing it sooner, between the petrifications and all of the roosters being killed, not that they had a way of finding the beast considering they had no clue where the chamber even was.

When Lockhart showed up late to the staff meeting concerning Ms. Weasley, Severus couldn’t help his insistence that the fool deal with the monster, considering he had been bragging about knowing where the chamber was. The Potions Master was delighted – not that anyone could tell – when Minerva joined his mockery without being overly obvious what they were doing.

After Lockhart left to go _prepare_ , Severus and the other three heads of houses began making arrangements for the students to leave the castle the following morning. It had barely been ten minutes since Lockhart left when Severus felt the pull once more. While it wasn’t very strong, it startled him enough that he nearly knocked over the floo powder he had been reaching for. He waved Minerva off when she expressed concern but inwardly frowned. Potter was supposed to be in his dormitory with the rest of the students. With how small the pull felt, he couldn’t have found himself in too much trouble, so the Potions Master ignored it for now.

Another ten minutes later and the pull began to get stronger. Severus closed his eyes for a second in exasperation; Potter was definitely up to something. Before he could do anything more, the ground shook slightly. Severus looked at Minerva, who was frowning in confusion along with Molly and Arthur who had just stepped through to be informed of the situation, and suggested that they have the prefects of each house make sure all of the students are accounted for. She agreed and, unsurprisingly, Potter and Weasley were missing.

Minerva sent all of the professors to search for the boys, but Severus _knew_ that Potter and Weasley were in a situation not unlike their meeting with Quirrell the year before. Meaning they were probably facing down a basilisk. The Potions Master inwardly cursed at Potter’s ability to find himself in these situations. What was it with Gryffindors and recklessness? _Honestly_.

***

It took twenty minutes for Potter and Weasley to appear. _Twenty minutes_ for Severus to worry about a boy he never thought he’d become _attached_ to. Twenty minutes for him to finally acknowledge the fact that the connection between them was probably more than just the vow that Severus had made for Harry’s protection, because otherwise he wouldn’t be this _worried_.

Severus doesn’t think he had ever been so _scared_ for someone in his life – not even Lily, which was absolutely _baffling_ – when the pull tugged sharply in his chest, not unlike the time with the bludger, and then _burned_ for nearly two minutes before stopping completely.

If Severus panicked when the pull went from one extreme to another so quickly, nobody needed to know.

He only stopped panicking a few minutes later when Minerva’s Patronus appeared to tell him that Harry, the two youngest Weasleys, and Lockhart were in her office and unharmed. Severus doesn’t think he’s ever been so relieved.

Once he knew Harry was safe, Severus immediately made his way to his quarters and poured himself a drink. There was no way he was going to be able to come to terms with his _revelation_ without one.

Somehow, Severus Snape had found himself attached to a _Potter_ , of all people.


End file.
